Ten Critical Areas of the Believers Life

The Apostle Paul deals with ten
critical areas in a believer's life. Ten critical areas. Now you needn't take Hebrews
13 and try to preach to an unsaved man because you won't find a
great deal there for him. But this is to the believer.
And there are ten critical areas. anybody out. The minister, the
elder, the deacon, the Sunday school teacher, the folks who've
been here a long time and folks who haven't been here very long.
These are ten critical areas that never cease to be critical.
There's no ultimate victory in this life, this side of the grave,
this side of heaven, in any of these areas. They all could fall
under attack, or any one of them at any time. And we just may
not be as strong in these areas as we think we are. But let's
look at them one at a time, and I'll try not to be too long tonight,
but this should be interesting for you. I believe what helps
me will help you, and what blesses me will bless you. And you stay
with me now. Let me give you 10 thoughts,
10 critical areas, 10 words. The first word is love. Verse
1 says, let brotherly love continue. Now this is assuming that you're
redeemed. Something can't continue that
hasn't started. Something can't grow that hasn't
been born. So we're talking to believers
here now. Let brotherly love continue in you and among you. Now, we're to love all men. We're
even to love our enemies. Christ said, you've heard it
said by them a whole time, thou shalt love thy brother and hate
thine neighbor and hate thine enemy. I say unto you, love your
enemy. Bless them that persecute you, bless them, pray for them,
and curse not, and feed your enemy when he hungers, and pray
for your enemy, love him, pity him. If it weren't for God's
grace, you'd be in the same condition he's in. We're exhorted to love
all men, but this love he's talking about here is a special family
love. It's between believers, between
people who have a spiritual relationship in Christ, let brotherly love.
Now Christ said this is the way that other people will know you're
my disciples if you love one another. It's no wonder that
the people of this world put a question mark on the profession
of most churches. It's obvious they do not love
one another. It's obvious that the ministers do not love their
people and the people do not love their ministers and the
people do not love one another. They're constantly embroiled
in some kind of strife or division or quarrels or arguments. That's
not love. By this shall all men know you
are my disciples if you love one another. And then we know
that we have passed from death unto life if we love the brethren.
It's an evidence that we've been redeemed if God has begotten
or shed abroad his love in our hearts. If it's not there, it
ought to convince us that we're not redeemed, because how can
we love God whom we have not seen if we do not love our brother
whom we have seen? He that loveth not knoweth not
God. Let brotherly family love continue in you and among you. And that's a critical area. Now
about is faith, hope, and love, but the greatest of these is
love. The greatest is not doctrine, it's not principle, it's not
law, it's not morality, it's love. That which we see the least of
is the most important. How we can glide over this thing
like we seem to be doing, and how the religious world can glide
over it like they seem to be doing, Jealousy and envy and
strife and Preachers are as as guilty as any one group. In fact, I think they're the
greatest offenders Church leaders Let brotherly love continue.
This is a critical area It's one in which we shall be judged
and in one in which we ought to be judged For he that loveth
not knoweth not God and that's so plainly recorded in God's
Word. There's no need for anyone to
miss it We're so busy sharpening our pencils of faith and we're
dull on this point of love. And God says it's most important.
And I can have faith so that I can remove mountains and have
not love, it profiteth me nothing. I can give my body to be burned,
I can be the most generous man in town, and if I have not love,
it profiteth me nothing. I can have the gift of tongues,
what I call the baptism of the Holy Ghost, And all of these
things, and have not love, I'm a sounding brass and a tinkling
cymbal. How can we miss it? Don't know
how, but something's... It's evidently the blindness
of Satan that we think God is like ourselves.
He loves us, and we're unlovely, and we can't love others. He
forgives us, and on the only basis in this world is His mercy.
It's not that we're going to do better, not that we're even
able to do better, not that we're even going to mend our ways,
but he still forgives us. And yet that's the most difficult
thing in the world for people who call themselves Christians
to do, to actually forgive. Well, it's not everyone that
saith, Lord, Lord, that shall enter the kingdom of heaven.
Well, the second area, hospitality, verse 2. Be not forgetful to
entertain strangers. We're not talking about everybody
knocks on your door. You've got to use some wisdom.
I don't mean for you to open your door and open your household
to every crook that comes along, you know. Don't be taken in by... We're talking here about hospitality
in the brotherhood, especially. Hospitality in the Brotherhood.
Do not forget to entertain strangers in this Brotherhood. Open your
door and your hearts to those who come to you. They may be
special messengers of the Lord of Glory. Open your hearts and
your arms to those whom God sends your way. You think by chance
or accident. There were some disciples who
actually entertained the Lord unawares one time. They invited
him then to eat with them, and he'd break bread and blessed
it, and they knew who he was. But up to that point, they didn't
know. Abraham entertained those angels in Genesis 19, not knowing
who they were. Lot in Genesis 20, not knowing
who they were. And our Lord said to give a cup
of cold water in his name, or the name of the disciple, you
won't lose your reward. You just never know when God's
going to send someone your way. You never know. And many have
entertained, not, I don't believe the word is especially meant
here, angels themselves, but messengers of God. I remember
1957. I was living over on Stevens Street,
across the street from where I'm living now, 21 years ago. John Thornberry and I were sitting
in the living room talking one day. And someone knocked at the
door and I went to the door and there stood a young man about
22, 23 years of age. And he, it was a dry cleaning
truck sitting down there in the street. He was driving that dry
cleaning truck. He was standing there at the
door and he said, do you have any dry cleaning? Well, I usually
have some dry cleaning, you know, but it's so easy right then.
I'm busy, John was sitting there, we were talking, so easy to say
no and shut the door, thank you or something else, you know,
I don't want to be bothered. We're soft and we don't want to be
bothered. We've got our families, we've got our wives, we've had
a long day at the office or the steel mill or somewhere and we
can justify the fact that we just don't want to be bothered.
Wasn't me, it was God's grace or something. But anyway, I said,
I think I can find a suit for you to take with you. And so
I said, wait just a minute. And I left the door open. I went
back to the closet and I came back and I handed him the suit
and I said, when are you going to bring it back? Well, he said,
really, he said, I didn't want to pick up any dry clean. I just
had to have some reason to come see you. He said, I'm R.T. Kendall. And he said, your brother
may have. I said, yes, sir. He said, my
mother's been listening to you on the radio up until she died
a few years ago. And I used to listen to you.
And I was getting ready to go to high school. And I need to talk to you. I
need to know what you believe. And I said, well, come in. We
sat down. But to shorten that story, R.T.
is now a pastor of one of the largest churches in England.
He's pastor of one of the most influential pulpits in England,
or in Europe for that matter. And I was able in those early
years to be, I think, of some influence because God sent him
my way. I was in a Bible conference one
time down in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. Darcy and I were down there.
I'd seen this young preacher before and another young man.
You'll pardon these personal references. What I'm trying to
do is challenge you to start to look out for an opportunity
to be used of God. Instead of going around forcing
doors open and jamming your foot in doors and pushing yourself
on people, just be alert to an opportunity. I was sitting behind a young
man. He was there at the conference. He was not on the program. He
wasn't preaching on the program. I'd heard him make an effort
at preaching years ago. But I wasn't particularly impressed
with his message, but I was impressed with him. And I had a little
extra money in my pocket. People give me money once in
a while to give to missionaries or to run through the church
and give where I want to use it. But anyway, I don't always
do things like that. I just felt impressed to tap
him on the shoulder and give him some money. And I did that. And it opened a door between
us. And he reached out, and I reached
out, and I've been down to preach for him, and I've been used in
his ministry and in his life, and I've been used to help him
come out of a place of ineffectiveness to one of the large churches
down in Florida now. He's going to be one of the speakers
on our conference program. But what I'm saying is, it's
so easy. For us to be content with our
circle, or with, like Don and I have been friends for 31 years
now, let's let somebody else in too. And others of you, Russell and
I have been friends for that many years, and Brother Jeff,
and then Mike, and the folks that have been here two or three
years now, let's see if we can't open the door and let somebody
else in. into our hearts and into our arms and into our fellowship.
This is what he's talking about here. Be not forgetful to entertain
strangers in the brotherhood. It may not look like much, like
one fellow said one time, open your heart. You may be disappointed,
but you may be blessed. And if you really open your heart
and your arms, you'll be blessed more than you'll be disappointed.
More. I appreciate some of you. and
the way God has used you to bring other people here to hear the
gospel. But now, some of you sitting here tonight, can you
look in this congregation and find even one person that you've
brought to hear the gospel? That's challenging. Can you find
one person to whom you've opened your heart, opened your doors,
opened your a hand, a fellowship, and they have been blessed because
of you. They have heard the gospel, they've
been brought to Christ, or at least they've shown an interest
in Christ, but you've opened your circle and invited them
in. One little old poem I used to
read years ago when I was a kid, he drew a circle and shut me
out, I drew a circle and took him in. All right, thirdly, and that's
an area you can't quit there, hospitality. You never know when
you're going to bless somebody. Just never know. And don't wait for them to pat
you on the back and say, I sure appreciate you and all. They
may not even do it, but you can see. All right, thirdly, compassion. Verse 3, remember them that are
in bonds. We're talking about them that
are in prison here. Now, they're not in prison for criminal action.
They're in prison because of the gospel, as bound with them. Now, I haven't given this the
full treatment yet. Wait a minute. Compassion's the
word, but there are two types of adversity, two types of suffering. Read on. And them which suffer
adversity as being yourselves also in the body. There are two
types of suffering. There's spiritual suffering and
physical suffering. There are two types. And what he is saying here lets
you and I identify ourselves with people in both situations,
under both types of affliction. There are those under spiritual
affliction. Turn to Galatians chapter 6. Let me read you a verse here. And the way that he deals with
us on this He says, remembering that you are subject to the same
afflictions. Don't say not me now, because
in Galatians 6 verse 1, Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault,
ye which are spiritual, ye which are strong, restore such a one
in the spirit of meekness, considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted. You're still a human being. Bear
ye one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.
What is the law of Christ? Somebody tell him the law of
Christ. Love. This is my commandment, he said,
that ye love one another. You fulfill. All right, read
on. For if a man think himself to be something when he's nothing,
he deceives himself. All right, the second area is
those who suffer in the body. We're talking about the sick,
the handicapped, the old. Age is an affliction. in a sense,
loneliness is a great burden to bear, the handicapped, the
afflicted, the old, the sick. The apostle reminds us that we
are also in the body, we're also still in the flesh, and we may
not be afflicted either spiritually or physically, but others are,
and we are subject to it. It's only by God's grace that
we're not afflicted. If our brethren are persecuted
for Christ's sake, we ought to be burdened for them as fellow
prisoners, as being bound with them, as being under the rod
with them, as being afflicted with them, as suffering with
them. Those who are sick in body and
those who are distressed of body and those who are afflicted of
body, remember, this body is subject to go bad at any time. Now then, how much, how much
do we, how much concern do we really show for those who are
afflicted, and those who are old, and those who are infirm,
and those who are distressed, and those who suffer adversity?
And what time do we give to them? How much thought do we give to
them? How much concern do we give to them? This is a critical
area. The day is going to come, like
One of our ladies was saying to me the other night, we were
talking, she said, my mother's mother-in-law's gone
now. When she was alive, I didn't
have time for her. She was lonely. And it bothers
me now, but that I didn't have time for her. And we think about
these things. People and things are precious
to us after they're gone, aren't they? after they're gone. And that's tragic. It shouldn't
be that way. He exhorts us to remember them. To remember them. It doesn't take long. But our
minds, we're self-centered. We say, well, I just don't think
of others. Who do we think of? Number one. And we spend all of our time
considering our own selves, our comforts, our entertainments,
Needs and so forth. The fourth word is marriage marriage
Let marriage be held in honor build your marriage Build your
marriage marriage is ordained of God. It's instituted by God
Before God ever instituted or organized Joe the church organized
marriage instituted marriage It was here before, and I'm not
talking about eternally now, eternally we were in Christ and
the foundation of the world, I know, but I'm talking about
in time, on this earth, the first institution that the Heavenly
Father revealed, let's put it that way and we'll be orthodox.
The first institution He revealed was marriage. For this cause
shall a man leave his mother and father and cling to his wife,
and the two shall be one flesh. Our Lord Jesus Christ recognized
marriage. He attended a wedding feast.
Marriage was sanctioned by the Apostle Paul. He chose it as
the symbol of Christ's union with the Church. Husbands, love
your wives as Christ loved the Church and gave himself for it.
Wives, be obedient to your husband as the Church is obedient to
Christ. Build your marriage. Put forth every effort Not just
to hold it together, not just to survive the difficulty, but
to build it. Build it on trust, and love,
and faith, and respect, and compassion. Because he says in verse 4, now,
this is important. Marriage is honorable, and the
bed is undefiled. But those who break up marriages,
those who are promiscuous, whoremongers and adulterers, And those who
do not hold marriages together and keep the sanctity and sacredness
of the home, God's going to judge them. We're talking to believers
now. We're talking to you right here.
Now, I know there are people who before they were converted
had troubles and conflicts and divorces and all these things.
This is written to believers. Now, right here in this congregation
are believers or those who profess to be so. And you've got a marriage. Now build it. Now build it. There's nothing you can do about
the murders you committed. There's nothing but you can commit
no more. There's nothing you can do about the divorces through
which you came, but you can divorce no more. There's nothing you
can do about the sins of the past, but you can put forth every
effort to build what God Almighty has put together. Marriage. That's a critical area,
and I'm not talking about just surviving and getting along and
keeping the thing intact for the kid's sake or respect's sake
or the gospel's sake. I'm talking about building it.
The two people have a happy home, and people can sense the happiness
and feel the happiness, and you know how to be happy is to make
somebody else happy, and that's so. Not have my way, but to have
our way. Consideration. It's a big word.
The most difficult partnership in the world is a marriage, because
you're together so much. You know, you can, uh, when you're
in partnership, Dick, you can kiss him goodbye and go home,
can't you? But now, uh, when you're in marriage, it's for
good. When you're married. And it's a difficult partnership,
and it takes effort. It takes work. It takes consideration,
and a whole lot of it. All right, number five. covetousness. Now watch this word. He says
in verse 5, let your conversation, your conduct, your conversation
be without covetousness. Now brethren, what is this? We're
saying this, let my conversation and my conduct and my thoughts
and my desires be free from Craving worldly possessions. Craving
wealth. Craving position. Craving recognition. Be content with what you have.
Turn to Luke 12. I want to trace back a couple
of other scriptures here. Turn to Luke 12. Now this is
an area where 1978 And I know a man that has nothing
can be just as guilty of this as a man who has a whole lot.
In fact, he can be more guilty. The love of money is the root
of all evil, and I know a man who has none can love it more
than a man who has it. So there's no position safe from
this unholy greed, this unholy covetousness, this craving, this
wild desire, this anxious care to have more, to have more, to
have more of the worldly possessions In Luke 12, verse 15, our Lord
said, listen to it, take heed. He said unto them, take heed,
beware of covetousness. A man's life consisteth not in
the abundance of the things which he possesses. And then he told
them about the parable of the rich fool, and you've heard that.
And then in verse 22, he said to his disciples, therefore I
say unto you, take no thought, that is, no anxious thought,
undue thought. for your life, what you shall
eat, neither for the body, what you shall put on. The life is
more than meat, the body is more than clothes. Consider the birds. They don't sow or reap, they
neither have storehouses nor barns, but God feeds them. How
much more are you better than the fowls? And which of you,
by taking one thought, can add to his statue one cubit? If ye
then be not able to do that thing which is least, why take ye thought
for the rest? He said, seek first the kingdom
of God and his righteousness, and these things will be added
to you. Turn to Proverbs 30. Proverbs chapter 30. And this
is an area that, and all of these areas are critical. I named it
well, didn't I? Critical. Love, hospitality,
marriage, But this thing of covetousness,
Proverbs 30 verse 7, two things have I required of thee. Deny
me them not before I die. Remove far from me vanity and
lies. Give me neither poverty nor riches. Feed me with food convenient
for me, that is of my allowance. Lest I be full and deny God and
say, who is the Lord? Or lest I be poor and steal and
take the name of God in vain. You know, in this day of wealth,
and I was talking to a couple down in Virginia, and I think
their salary was something like, I can't remember exactly, something
like $1,000 a month, and their house payments and their insurance
and taxes was $650 a month. Now you think about that. They
had to have a house as big as the fella down the street. They
had to have all these things. And they were under a strain.
Their marriage was under a strain. Their relationship with everybody
else was under a strain. He was cracking at the seams.
But think about this. It's that, I cannot be satisfied. I can't be content. Turn to Philippians
4 verse 11. Philippians 4 verse 11. Listen
to this. Not that I speak in respect of
want, for I have learned in whatsoever state I am therewith to be content. And then 1 Timothy 6. Let's look
at this. What are you preaching? I'm preaching
that covetousness is a great sin. It's called, Charlie, idolatry
in the Scripture. And this is a great sin in our
day. It's a sin in which the majority
of us are on the borderline, if not in it. In 1 Timothy 6,
verse 6 through 8. Now listen. Godliness with contentment is
great gain. We brought nothing into this
world. It's certain we can carry nothing out. Having food and
raiment, let us be there with contentment. But how many of
us are borrowing, and borrowing again, and borrowing to cover
that, and borrowing to cover that, and we stay head over heels
all the time because we've got to have something else? I think
it's a sin, Jack. I think it's a sin. I really do. And then this thing,
it's covetous. That's all. We don't need these
things because all of us were brought up poor, just about everybody
here over Third forty years of age knows what it is to pick
peas on the hands stuff like that But we what it takes satisfy
us a little bit more a Little bigger this and a little bigger
than it and I think we ought to quit talking about going to
the picture show It's not talking about some of these things Like
that That preachers preaching on Dancing, you know on the old
cutter lady down front said amen brother preach it He got on gambling. She'd say, Amen, brother, preach
it. He got on a few other things. She said, Amen, preach it. He
got on dipping snuff. She said, You quit preaching,
go on to meddling now. And maybe we're meddling in this
thing of covetousness, but we need to meddle, and we need to
think about these things. If something's going to interfere
with my relationship with the Lord, I need to meddle in it.
And this thing can. All right, let's look at verse,
if you will, the sixth word, verse 7. Remember them that have
the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God, whose
faith follow, considering the end of their conversation. The
rule over you. Look at verse 17. Obey them that
have the rule over you. Obey them and submit yourselves. Verse 24. Salute them that have
the rule over you. Who is he talking about? He's talking about your pastors,
your spiritual guides and leaders. He is saying, remember them.
He is saying, obey them. He is saying, salute them. And what he's saying is this,
respect and follow the leadership of true pastors. To remember
them is to respect them and to provide for them and to follow
their leadership. To remember them is to pray for
them and honor them, an elder. who labors well, is worthy of
double honor. It's to heed their gospel. For
he says in verse 17, look at it, Obey them that have the rule
over you, or guide you, submit yourselves, for they watch for
your souls. They watch for your souls, if
they preach Christ. And that, down in verse 7, whose
faith follow, considering the end of their conversation, Jesus
Christ, Now a true minister preaches Christ, and he must give an account. You say, what is this account? Well, I think it's threefold.
I think first he gives account to his own conscience. Have you
ever thought about this? The pastor, first of all, must
give an account to his own conscience. Is he faithful to his congregation? I think, secondly, he gives account
to the brethren of the church. Now, I say this, if your pastor
is not preaching the gospel, it's not only his fault, it's
your fault. You need, like Ed Ballard, to say something to
him about it. Isn't that right, Ed? It took a long time, but
you finally did. That's right. The pastor must
give an account to his conscience, but also the men of this church.
I don't mean for us to listen to men with a critical ear and
make them dot every I and cross every T, but now, if I don't
preach the gospel up here, you men have a responsibility to
do something about it. That's right. And then thirdly, we give an
account to him, not necessarily in that order. Now he says here,
they give an account, and it better be with joy. and not with grief, because that
wouldn't be profitable to you. The man who is sent of God, now
think about this a minute, the man who stands in this pulpit
and preaches to you, if you hear his message, love that message,
and follow that message, and are faithful to that message,
and God's done something in your life and heart through that message,
when he thinks of you, he thinks of you with joy. He thinks of you with joy. When
he gives an account to his conscience, it's with joy. When he talks
to the men of the church, Brother So-and-so is growing in grace,
and they all rejoice. When he talks to the Lord about
you, Lord, I thank you for, oh, Brother So-and-so, he's growing.
Praise the Lord. But now if he weeps over you
in his conscience and weeps over you in talking with you about
you with the other deacons and elders, he weeps over you before
the throne of grace, you're in trouble. You see that, what he's
saying there? They give an account. In verse
7, obey them, follow them, submit to them who have the rule over
you, and submit yourselves. They watch for your souls as
they that must give an account, that they may do it with joy,
and not with greed. Because that's not profitable
for you. All right? The seventh word. I'm going too
long, but we'll close in a minute. Apostasy. Look at verse 9. Be
not carried about with divers and strange doctrines. It's a good thing that the heart
be established with grace. Now we're all subject to this.
Guard against doctrines. Why do you call them strange
doctrines? They're strange to the scriptures. They're not in
the scriptures. These doctrines are strange to the person and
work of Christ. They're not in keeping with his
person and work. They're strange to the doctrine
of grace. They're doctrines of works. Now,
these doctrines are going to come your way. He says that in
the last days perilous times shall come. Men shall be lovers
of themselves more than lovers of God. And we need to guard
against these doctrines that are contrary to the word of God
and contrary to Christ and contrary to grace. Be established. Now here are three key words,
watch this. It is good thing that the heart, that's the first
word, salvation is a heart work. This is where the work of God
is done. It's not just an intelligent mental understanding of some
doctrine. Now listen to me just a moment
right here. You've gone through the scripture and man's depravity
and God's sovereignty and elective grace and these things are logical.
They are the most logical doctrine in the world. But you're not
going to be established by believing something because it's logical.
Because something strongly emotional may come through. I've known
people to do things contrary to their judgment, haven't you? You've done things contrary to
your good judgment because you were emotionally persuaded. You
were emotionally picked up like a terrific whirlwind just came
through and picked you up. You say, why did I say that?
We've done that. Why did I do that? That's against
my judgment. So the place for us to be established
is not just in our minds and in our doctrines, because that
can get awful cold, but in our hearts. My heart is knit to Christ. My heart is the throne room of
Christ. My emotions and my love is for
Christ. And let him be established, convinced,
persuaded, settled. My heart is settled. My heart
is single, David said. like a rock, on a rock. Where
is it set? On grace. That's the third word.
Salvation by grace. Grace in the beginning, grace
in the end. Grace for righteousness and grace
for justification and grace for sanctification and grace all
the way through. Now, if your heart, if your heart,
now watch this. If you folks out here, if your
heart is established on the grace of God. There's no Tom, Dick,
or Harry, Reverend, Doctor, Rabbi, Healer, anybody else going to
move you if your heart is established with grace. Now you can be a
Baptist and you can be shaken from the top of your head to
the bottom of your feet. You can be a Calvinist. You can be
anything else. But if your heart is established
with grace, nothing's going to move you. All right? The eighth word is
praise. Verse 15. By him, therefore,
let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually. We need to learn to praise God,
not once in a while, but continually. Now, there are two or three things
I must say. He says, by him, through Christ, let us offer
the sacrifice of praise. There's no coming to God except
through Christ. in Christ to all God's mercies and blessings,
all because of him, all through him, all in him. And so being,
now watch this, being made priest of God by Christ, all the typical
and legal sacrifices being abolished, fulfilled by Christ, Paul points
to the one sacrifice we're to bring. Praise. I can't bring a lamb. Christ
is the lamb. I can't bring a blood atonement.
Christ is the blood atonement. I can't bring a turtledove. I
can't bring the first fruits of the field. I can't bring the
firstling of the flock. I am a priest, but Christ my
High Priest has abolished and has fulfilled all of these sacrifices,
all legal sacrifices. So what do I bring to God as
a priest? Sacrifices of praise. Praise to God continually. And it's called the fruit of
our lips. You see that in verse 15, the fruit of our lips. That
has reference to the offering of the first fruits and distinct
to distinguish it from the ceremonial Sacrifices he calls it the fruit
of our lips Praise God Praise God, you know I'm gonna say something
rather plainly here. I Know I sometimes I get up here
and and and Don and Ronnie and Lloyd and others obviously lead
the singing and lead the congregation and so forth, and you get up
and announce a number in the hymn book, and some people just
fold their arms and look straight ahead. And they have the most
unhappy expression, and they have the most dissatisfied look,
the most indifferent look. And then you say, no contribution,
no entering into the worship. Let me tell you, I know everybody
can't sing. But now, we're worshiping God here. Say this is Sunday
morning. And we've come in off the street
now, and it's 10.15, it's time to start the service. I don't
care if you sing a note. You're not here to be entertained.
You're not here to listen to people sing. That's the reason
I'm glad we don't have a choir. You're here to worship. You're
here to praise God. I don't care if I couldn't carry
a tune in a bucket. A big bucket. The thing for me
to do when Don says number 261 is open that book, or look on
with my neighbor, and at least follow the words. And Don, say
them or sing them or hum them or something, but worship God.
Praise God. When we walk with the Lord in the light of His
Word. But don't stand there with your
arms folded looking up at the ceiling as if you weren't a part
of that worship service. That's right. Worship God. When
someone says, let's read the scripture, open your Bible. You're
there to worship God. You're not there to be read to.
You're there to worship God. That's participation. Now, I'm
preaching right now. And this is the part where God's
speaking to us and teaching us by the Holy Spirit. But when
we're worshiping, that's participation on the part of every believer.
And I don't see how a person can claim to be a believer who
will not praise God. and will not worship God, and
will not participate in the worship service. People wonder why I
don't like babies in service, because it disturbs worship.
I'm not here to look at pretty babies. We'll go back in the
nursery and look at the pretty babies. But we're here to worship God.
This thing, this is momentous, this is monumental, this is great,
this is soul-shaking, this is heaven-shaking. We're not here
to play games or socialize, we're here to worship. And every person
ought to participate. I think everybody ought to worship
God. I think the drunk ought to worship God. I think everybody
that has breath ought to praise God. And honestly, I got upset
one Sunday, and I showed myself a little bit. I didn't mean to
do that, but I just stood up there and looked out there and
saw half a dozen people that were counting the squares in
this building. I was trying to worship God,
and it bothered me. It disturbed my worship. And that's what I
say about people coming to worship service late. It disturbs worship. It disturbs worship. Now when,
when, when you, when you, you wouldn't be late President Carter
sent for you. You wouldn't be late your big
boss sent for you. Why you insult God by coming
to his house late? God's bigger than your big boss.
Maybe your God's not that big. But my God is. And I'll just
be perfectly honest with you, if I can't come to church on
time, I won't come. That's right, disturb people's
worship. Praising God, that's too hard,
isn't it? But that's so. That's so. All right, the ninth word, listen
to this, giving, verse 16, to do good and to communicate. Don't forget to communicate.
The word communicate there is to share. to share with others,
to share with the needy, the underprivileged, that's pleasing
to God. There are two things here, he says, that are pleasing
to God. You know what they are? Praise, praise, and communicating,
or giving, sharing, sharing with others. All right, the last word
is verse 18, prayer. Pray for us, Paul said. Pray
for us. We need to pray for one another. These are critical areas. Am
I too critical? Is it too sharp? Too harsh? But
we need these things. It's so easy for the believer
sometimes to get callous. You know, I read one time about
doctors. Sometimes they fool with blood and these things till
they become immune, insensitive. And undertakers, morticians,
they fool with dead bodies till they get in a, you know, a cold,
dead insensitivity. God help me not to do that when
it comes to spiritual things. God help me, every time I open
this, for it to be a new experience. Every time Don stands up here,
just like in a moment, we're going to close with a hymn. When
he calls out that number, let it be a new experience. When I approach God in prayer,
O God, deliver me from becoming commonplace, approaching the
throne of grace. It's deadly if it does. It's deadly. These are critical
areas and areas we need to be exhorted. We need to be rebuked. And here's the thing, we need
to do something about it.

Ten Critical Areas of the Believers Life

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Ten Critical Areas of the Believers Life

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